Estimates on potential yield and maximum sustainable fleet size for marine fisheries in Kerala

Time series data on marine fish landings and effort in units and hours of operation along Kerala during 1997-2007 were used to arrive at estimates on potential yield (PY) and maximum sustainable fleet size (MSFS). The PY was estimated as a simple high pass filter of the landings after classifying the resources into three categories, viz., demersals, large pelagics and small pelagics. The total PY was estimated as 6.99 lakh tonnes and the annual average landings during 1997-2007 was 5.81 lakh tonnes. The MSFS estimates were made from the data on fishing units and hours of operations of important craft and gear combinations, and compared with the existing fleet size. It was found that the number of trawlers and outboard ringseiners in operation are in excess of the recommended MSFS